How does communication work? 

Our Communications Department efficiently manages all our informative and regular communication through BoosterHub, primarily via our Weekly and Special Edition Newsletters. 

Parents can also communicate through the chat feature in BoosterHub.

Mr. Weiss will communicate any changes to the calendar and share the event itinerary as soon as he has the information available with the parents. The information will be added to the Newsletter that our communications department will send out. 

How about students' communication?

It's important to note that students are responsible for and expected to communicate with their parents, especially when their regular schedule changes or updates.

Mr. Weiss communicates information to leadership, who communicates it to their respective sections. Mr. Weiss also shares the information with all the students through chat during class or a rehearsal. The student must then communicate it to the parents. 

When can students be picked up to go home? Let's break it down. 

The main points to remember here are as follows:

* Students cannot go home until Mr. Weiss dismisses them.

* Students must communicate with their parents once dismissed. 

Rehearsals: 

The times that we all see on the schedule are the times of the actual rehearsal, which means that the rehearsal start time is on the schedule. In other words, if we arrive 5 minutes early, we are late :) The same happens with the end time. Rehearsal will end when the schedule shows; however, the students may group for a quick "regroup/debrief," and then, they will still have to put all the equipment away and clean up. Mr. Weiss will then dismiss them. Therefore, it usually adds 20 minutes after the rehearsal end time. However, this does not mean that parents should arrive 20, 30, or 40 minutes later to pick up their students just because they want to avoid sitting in the carpool. Chaperones will stay at the school until the last student is picked up, and we would like their time to be respected. Chaperones spend all day with the students during competitions, and they also have students in the band. Their student must often stay at the school waiting with their parent chaperone until the last student is picked up. 

Football Games:

Students are expected to be at the stadium and in the area assigned to the band during the football game, as they will be performing. Mr. Weiss will determine how long we will stay that night, depending on whether we have a competition the next day, etc. 

If Mr. Weiss decides we should only stay for part of the game only, students must help clean up and put away equipment. Then, Mr. Weiss will dismiss them, and students will communicate this to their parents. The Band Booster Board team will do their best to communicate this to the parents.

***Weather not cooperating: When the weather does not cooperate during a football game night, the situation becomes tricky. Therefore, we must all be ready to roll with the punches. Rest assured, we are well-prepared to handle such situations. The ultimate goal is for the students to perform; however, there is always the chance that a last-minute decision must be made and the performance is cancelled. Since it is a school event, it is not Mr. Weiss's sole decision, as the school administration is involved. Mr. Weiss must remain in communication with the Athletics Department, their assistant, Dr. Decker, and the rest of the school administration. Once a consensual decision is made, he will communicate with the students and the volunteers on site. If the students are dismissed, they must communicate it to the parents. The Band Booster Board will do their best to communicate with the rest of the parents. 

Competitions:

During competitions, Mr. Weiss will ask the students to inform the parents of their estimated arrival time (ETA) at the school about 30 or 40 minutes before the arrival. Chaperones will help remind students to contact their parents while on the bus. If any student does not have a phone or runs out of battery, please be sure to remind your student to inform the chaperones. The chaperones will assist them so they can contact their parents. They will let them use their phones to text or call their parents.

The Band Booster Board will also try their best to communicate with parents via BoosterHub chat and provide updates. 

***Important: The ETA students will give you does not mean that this will be when they go home. So, what happens once we arrive at school?

School Arrival

When students arrive from a competition, they are all assigned different tasks, such as helping unload the trucks, putting equipment and instruments away, and cleaning the band room. Once completed, Mr. Weiss may call them for a quick meeting. This meeting could be with the entire band, just the officers, or only the leadership. Students are only allowed to leave the school once Mr. Weiss dismisses them. 

Therefore, while waiting, we ask that parents park their cars and come out to help unload the truck, help the students, pit prop, chaperones, and uniform volunteers so we can all complete all tasks faster! Your support is invaluable and greatly contributes to the success of our band. Competition days are long days, so any help we can get from everyone will be appreciated! 

As a parent, do you have questions regarding specific topics? Please email the corresponding department for further assistance:

Fundraising Opportunities: fundraising@panthercreekband.org

Sponsorships: vpmarketing@panthercreekband.org

Chaperones & Volunteer Opportunities: chaperones@panthercreekband.org

Payments: studentaccounts@panthercreekband.org

Sustainability: sustainability@panthercreekband.org

Communications: communications@panthercreekband.org

Alums: alumni@panthercreekband.org

Pit & Prop: operations@panthercreekband.org

Uniforms: uniforms@panthercreekband.org

Attendance, band class, or student concerns: aweiss@wcpss.net

Any other questions: president@panthercreekband.org